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eToro is one of the founders of copy trading as a
type of
investment. The ‘prototype’ of the social platform for traders,
exchanging information and copying trades was launched back in
2010.
Since then, the broker has maintained its leading position in the
market and, as of now, has the largest network. Traders Union has
prepared a review of eToro copy trading platform with a close look at
all the important features, trading conditions and possibilities for
copy trading.
Copy trading
is one of the methods of joint investment in the financial markets
that is quickly gaining popularity. It allows less experienced users
of the network to subscribe to trading signals of professional
traders. Once you subscribe to a trader, all trades and orders on the
trading account of this trader (manager) will be copied to the account
of the copier at a specific ratio.
The broker has one of the most advanced and largest
social trading networks. It is distinguished by a low entry threshold, beneficial trading
conditions, excellent functionality and simplicity.
eToro CopyTrader will be most useful for two categories of investors:
Novice traders
who want to gain access to the possibilities financial markets
offer, but who are not prepared to spend years studying and
gaining practical experience;
Experienced traders
aiming to gain recognition in the market and additional income
from the broker’s special programs.
eToro copy trading pros and cons
Pros
An opportunity for the beginners to earn at the same level as the
top traders of the platform
Minimum investment – $200
No additional commission.
Largest copy trading network in the world
Regulation in the UK, EU and Australia
Cons
High returns of traders in the past do not guarantee the same
outcome in the future
$200 – for copying traders
$500 – for copying investment portfolios
Additional fees for copying
No
Markets
Forex, CFDs, Stocks, ETF, Cryptocurrencies
Number of instruments
over 2,300
Average spread on EURUSD
1 pip
Commission on Apple shares
No
Size of the network
● Representatives of over 140 countries.
● Over 135,000 verified traders to copy
● 13 million registered clients in 2020
● The most popular traders have over 20,000 copiers
Potential return rate
The average return rate of top 50 traders in 2019 – 29%*.
eToro copy trading network review
Let’s review the key features of the eToro copy trading platform. You
can take a quick look even without authorization, but we recommend
opening a demo account on eToro for better familiarization. It will
take 5 minutes to register, but you will be able to test all features
of the system using the virtual $100,000.
A social network for traders. Feeds section
Once you access eToro online platform, you need to click on Copy
People in the menu on the left of the screen. The main page of eToro
features profiles of the most successful traders selected by the
editors and algorithms of eToro based on different indicators:
strategy
number of copiers
return rate
risk score
Past performance is not an indication of future results
By appearance and content, everything strongly resembles a traditional
social network. Every trader has a profile with a real photo. When you
click on it, you can see the first and the last name of the trader (data
of the managers are verified), view posts. Traders usually share some
market news, but also may post personal photos and videos on occasion.
Users can like, share and comment posts, just like in any traditional
social network.
eToro trader statistics
In the Stats section, you can study a trader’s performance in detail
for a period of one month or up to several years, not only with
returns, but also maximum losses per month, day and year.
Past performance is not an indication of future results
Also, if you scroll down, you can find a great number of useful
information:
Average risk score of the specified period (a year, for example)
Maximum drawdown per day, month and year
Dynamics of the number of copiers
Assets under management
Past performance is not an indication of future results
Next, you can view distribution of assets by markets and the latest trades
of the trader and also the average number of profitable trades.
Past performance is not an indication of future results
Trader’s Portfolio
In the Portfolio section, you can monitor its composition, position
(Long/Short) and current Profit/Loss percentage.
Past performance is not an indication of future results
You can also examine the portfolio composition as a chart by pressing a
button in the upper right corner.
Past performance is not an indication of future results
Chart Section
In the Chart Section, you can view profitability dynamics of the
trader. The chart shows profitability dynamics and allows you to see
how much you would have earned, if you had started to copy the trader
for the amount of $10,000 at a specific moment of time. The maximum
drawdown is set at 60%, which is rather a lot.
We consider this section somewhat redundant and rather a thing of
advertising, because the results of the trader in the past do not
guarantee the same outcome in the future, and it is best not to allow such
serious drawdowns in the portfolio.
Past performance is not an indication of future results
How to find the right trader to copy
Copying of over 100,000 verified traders is available on eToro. The
choice is humongous, but how do you find the best ones to copy among
the many thousands of managers?
There are two ways to do that.
Selection of traders by following eToro’s advice
The first option is to follow recommendations of eToro. As we’ve
already mentioned, on the main page of CopyTrader, the broker offers
to review the profiles of the most successful traders, which have
already passed the selection based on the following criteria:
Return rate
Strategy
Risk score
Number of copiers
This is the preferred option for the novice traders. All you will have to
do is select the candidates you like the most for
copying trades
on eToro.
However, there are certain rules that still have to be taken into
consideration:
The higher the profitability and the more volatile the market
the higher the risk score;
The less losses the trader allows, the better;
Diversification reduces the risk of large losses.
Choosing traders on eToro using filters
eToro allows users to independently set the criteria of searching for
traders to copy using the system of filters, which is featured in the
upper menu on the Copying People page.
Past performance is not an indication of future results
We will provide you with an example of a conservative strategy of work.
For example, we have a task to select the most profitable traders with a
low or average risk score.
For this, we selected the following criteria in the filters:
Time Period
it is best not to choose the periods of less than 12 months. It
will improve the odds that the trader’s result is not
accidental. If you increase the period to 24 months, the
reliability of the candidates can increase slightly, but the
choice will be smaller.
Return
we are setting it at >30%, as a balance between profitability
and risk must be preserved.
Risk Score
we choose an average score from 1 to 5.
Copy AUM
(Assets under Management) – you can leave this one without
changes and see what options will be offered. It is preferable
to choose serious traders, who manage an amount exceeding $1
million.
Number of Copiers
this is, of course, not the key indicator, but if at least
several hundred people do not copy a trader who looks successful
at first glance, that should be a warning sign. We set this
indicator at a minimum of 200 copiers.
Allocation
this is the list of the markets, where the trader trades. If you
want higher reliability, choose indices and stocks, and if you
are after profit – cryptocurrency. You can leave everything at
default setting and look at the result.
Active Weeks
this helps eliminate inactive traders.
There are two more important criteria related to risk management. They
help eliminate traders who allow major intraday or intra-month drawdowns
from the list.
Daily Drawdown
we set it at Medium - from 1 to 4%.
Weekly Drawdown
also Medium – from 3% to 10%.
Past performance is not an indication of future results
After you click on Apply, eToro system will offer you traders to copy
based on your chosen criteria. In our case, 15 traders were offered.
In order to build at least a small portfolio, you need to choose 4-5 of
them. Many traders from the eToro top list were also included into our
selection. You can study the profile and statistics of each trader by
clicking on their profile, as we’ve already explained above.
Past performance is not an indication of future results
How to get started with copying trades on eToro
After selecting a trader, it is quite easy to start copying trades on
eToro. There is the Copy button in the profiles of the selected
traders. That’s the one we click on. A page will open with customized
copy settings.
On this page, you need to choose two criteria:
The amount you want to allocate for the specific trader from the
general portfolio.
The drawdown value, upon reaching which the system must
automatically stop copying.
In the example below, we selected $1,000 and $900 (90% of the initial
amount).
Past performance is not an indication of future results
After you click on the Copy button again, you will automatically start
copying the trades of the trader for the selected amount. You can view the
results in your eToro Portfolio tab.
Past performance is not an indication of future results
In the same tab, you can stop copying, add or reduce the amount for
copying, set additional risk management criteria. It takes a bit of time
to see more or less objective results – at least a month, under condition
that risk management rules are observed.
Investment CopyPortfolio from eToro
If you do not wish to dedicate a lot of time to learn the features of
portfolios of different traders, eToro offers an opportunity to
subscribe to an investment portfolio. In this case, many instruments
and traders will be automatically copied to your account at once.
However, this is an option for clients with more money, as the minimum
investment in this case increases from $200 to $500.
The CopyPortfolios option on eToro is available in the corresponding
section of the Personal Account and functionally resembles Copy People.
The same filters and instruments can be applied for searching and
subscribing as with individual traders. Portfolios can be selected by
performance, risk score, etc.
There are three types of CopyPortfolios on eToro:
1
Thematic.
This way you can invest into sectors: renewable energy, vaccine
manufacturers, cryptocurrencies.
Past performance is not an indication of future results
2
Top traders.
This is a selection of traders differentiated by strategies and risk
score, to whom you can subscribe to within one portfolio.
3
Partner CopyPortfolio.
These are portfolios from third-party providers, who work with eToro
on partnership basis. The majority of them are also thematic, by the
sectors.
In order to start copying a portfolio on eToro, you need to take the
same step as with an individual trader – click on the Invest button,
set the amount for copying and risk criteria.
Past performance is not an indication of future results
Can I make money by copying traders on eToro?
The majority of investors prefer the service of copying traders on eToro. Yes, you can earn money, if the traders you copy
make money too. According to the broker, the average profitability of
the top 50 traders was 29% in 2019.
However, one should always keep in mind that excellent results of
traders in the past do not guarantee the same outcome in the future.
Even large hedge funds suffer losses. Therefore, for copy trading on
eToro, it would be wise to allocate the amount you are prepared to
risk.
How much does eToro copy trading cost?
The copiers only pay the broker’s commission. On its website, eToro
explains that the broker’s commission only comes from the
spread
of the trades, which are copied on your account. Successful managers
receive rewards on special conditions as agreed with the broker.
We estimated eToro commission level as low to average.
No commission is charged for the US stock and ETF trading
Average spread on EURUSD is 1 pip
Is eToro copy trading safe?
eToro is considered a reliable broker, as it holds three licenses from
top regulators:
The Financial Conduct Authority (UK);
Cyprus Securities and Exchange Commission (CySEC);
Australian Securities and Investments Commission.
Regulation in the countries with developed financial and legal systems
means that the broker’s operation is continuously monitored. In
addition, the broker provides rather detailed information about the
trades of all traders, which is why their financial results can be
checked.
The main risk of working with the copy trading system on eToro is related
to the market. Copied traders can not only earn, but also lose money.
Summary
According to Traders Union assessments, eToro tops the rating of
copy trading platforms in 2025 (link). The network has a huge
practical value both for the beginners, who want to gain access to
financial markets, and for professionals seeking recognition and a
source of additional income.
You can learn how to copy traders on eToro rather quickly, with many
of them showing excellent results. Nonetheless, one should keep in
mind that excellent performance in the past does not guarantee the
same outcome in the future; please carefully consider trader
selection and risk management criteria.
Expert review
Today, eToro is the undisputed leader among brokers that offer copy
trading. By popularity and number of users, it is unrivaled.
Functionality of the platform is also top level. It has many filters
and criteria you can use to find a trader both with a good return rate
and a rather moderate take on risk.
To make as much as the top professional traders and not spend too much
time and effort to do that? That’s every beginner’s dream! The entry
threshold is also quite affordable.
Be that as it may, one should not overestimate the possibilities of
this type of investment. Financial markets are a risk zone and it
certainly exists in copy trading as well. You need to critically
evaluate statistics and avoid investing more than you are prepared to
risk.
Yes, the broker has a good reputation confirmed by the licenses of
the regulators of the UK, EU and Australia.
How much do I need to start copying trades on eToro?
First, we recommend testing the CopyTrader system using a demo
mode, and then start trading real assets. The minimum amount for
copying one trader is $200, but it is better to diversify risks
and copy at least 3-4 traders. As for choosing the amount for
investing in copy trading, you need to make sure that even in the
case of losses, your financial stability and well-being does not
suffer.
Is copy trading risky?
All types of investment carry not only an opportunity to earn
money, but also the risks. Carefully select strategy providers and
observe risk management rules in order to avoid possible losses.
In which cases should I stop copying a trader on eToro?
When you start working with a manager, you set the maximum
drawdown value, upon reaching which copying stops automatically.
You can also do it yourself, if the manager’s result is negative
over a certain period of time. However, you need to keep in mind
that even the best traders have negative results in some months,
which is why every case needs to be considered in the context of
data for a longer period.
eToro is a multi-asset platform which offers both investing in stocks and cryptoassets, as well as trading CFDs.
Please note that CFDs are complex instruments and come with a high risk of losing money rapidly due to leverage. 76% of retail investor accounts lose money when trading CFDs with this provider. You should consider whether you understand how CFDs work, and whether you can afford to take the high risk of losing your money.
Past performance is not an indication of future results. Trading history presented is less than 5 complete years and may not suffice as basis for investment decision.
Copy Trading does not amount to investment advice. The value of your investments may go up or down. Your capital is at risk.
Cryptoasset investing is highly volatile and unregulated in some EU countries. No consumer protection. Tax on profits may apply.
"Don’t invest unless you’re prepared to lose all the money you invest. This is a high-risk investment and you should not expect to be protected if something goes wrong.
Take 2 mins to learn more"
eToro USA LLC does not offer CFDs and makes no representation and assumes no liability as to the accuracy or completeness of the content of this publication, which has been prepared by our partner utilizing publicly available non-entity specific information about eToro.
Mikhail Vnuchkov joined Traders Union as an author in 2020. He began his professional career as a journalist-observer at a small online financial publication, where he covered global economic events and discussed their impact on the segment of financial investment, including investor income. With five years of experience in finance, Mikhail joined Traders Union team, where he is in charge of forming the pool of latest news for traders, who trade stocks, cryptocurrencies, Forex instruments and fixed income.
Dr. BJ Johnson is a PhD in English Language and an editor with over 15 years of experience. He earned his degree in English Language in the U.S and the UK. In 2020, Dr. Johnson joined the Traders Union team. Since then, he has created over 100 exclusive articles and edited over 300 articles of other authors.
Mirjan Hipolito is a journalist and news editor at Traders Union. She is an expert crypto writer with five years of experience in the financial markets. Her specialties are daily market news, price predictions, and Initial Coin Offerings (ICO).
